Mussolini's Blunder: Greece and North Africa 1940 (WW2 Documentary)

by Panzer
June1940. France is on the verge of defeat and Great Britain is fighting for its life.
For Italian Dictator Benito Mussolini, this is a historic opportunity to expand the Italian Empire.
Instead, Italy suffers a series of humiliating disasters. So why did Mussolini declare war on
the Allies at this moment, and could Germany be ultimately responsible for the Italian fiasco?
Unlike Germany, Italy has few concrete plans for action at the outbreak of World War II. Still,
Germany’s expansion of the war in 1940 provides an unmistakable opportunity for Rome. On June 10,
Italy declares war on the Allies. Mussolini hopes contributing to German victory may earn him major
gains, like the seizure of the French fleet, the occupation of France and Corsica, and French
colonies like Tunisia or French Somaliland. Italy belatedly joins the German invasion of France
through the Western Alps, but the army’s poor performance, and German desires for a cooperative
neutral Vichy French regime, mean that when France surrenders on June 22, Italy gains little.
Italian actions though, do trigger a crisis in London. As British invasion fears grow,
so does the need to secure the Mediterranean as a vital link to the empire. Since the mid-1930s
Italy has expanded its imperial reach in Africa and the Balkans, and the British
worry because of their high estimations of Italian capabilities. The Royal Navy initially
recalls ships from the Mediterranean fleet to British waters, but Churchill cancels the move.
Britain’s strategy is to turn the war into a longer attritional conflict,
and it requires the Mediterranean and access to its wider empire to do it.
On June 11, Italy bombs British-controlled Malta, but elsewhere, Britain takes the initiative. From
June 10, British armored cars and tanks raid across the Egyptian border into Italian Libya.
Most Italian troops lack heavy, modern equipment or experience in
modern war. Instead, they are trained for colonial pacification. In one engagement,
Italian forces form a 19th century-style fighting square, which British tanks easily
destroy. In three months of combat, the Italians suffer 3,500 casualties for Britain’s 150.
Britain can’t go on wider offensive because it too lacks men and material . Meanwhile,
French capitulation frees up Italian forces, and Mussolini demands an invasion of Egypt to
eliminate the main British Mediterranean port of Alexandria and seize the Suez Canal. But his
commanders are reluctant. After friendly fire kills respected commander-in-chief Italo Balbo,
Rodolfo Graziani takes over. He’s a desert expert, but his experience is mostly against Senussi
tribesmen. Mussolini is encouraged by Italian success in East Africa, where colonial forces have
pushed back a small British garrison. But although Graziani outnumbers the roughly 36,000 British-led
troops, he lacks vehicles, water and supplies. After lengthy delays and pressure from Rome,
he reluctantly invades British Egypt on September 13, setting a modest first objective of Sidi
Barrani – 80 kilometres from the border. As Italian troops advance,
Graziani makes a grandiose statement: “One wonders when the English will begin to
understand that they have just dealt with the best fitted-out colonial army in the world, and when
they finally learn to appreciate the valor of the Italian soldier.” [Rodolfo Graziani] (Burgwyn 40)
British troops withdraw and Graziani orders his men to build fortified camps around Sidi
Barrani - again following colonial practices. Mussolini pressures him to advance another 130